First photos of Hugh Jackman in 'Real Steel' released

View full sizeGreg Williams/DreamWorks II Distribution Co., LLCDreamWorks released the first images from its film 'Real Steel' today. Here is the caption the studio provided: 'At Crash Palace, an underground fight club, Charlie (HUGH JACKMAN) instructs his former league bot Noisy Boy (left), pitted against backroom brawler
Midas, in this scene from REAL STEEL.'

DreamWorks Studios has released the first images from its new film "Real Steel," which is currently filming in Metro Detroit and a few other Michigan locations.

One photo shows a scene from the film, in which Hugh Jackman plays a robot boxing coach named Charlie.

The photo shows Jackman directing a robot in a fight, and from the intensity on his face, it looks like it could be at a pivotal point in the movie.

The second photo from the film shows director Shawn Levy ("Date Night," "Night at the Museum") talking with Jackman during a shoot.

The photos were first published in USA Today alongside an interview with Levy about the technology behind the robots.

According to Levy, the robot pictured is actually a real, physical device. Stop-motion animation is used during the fight scenes, but when the robots are interacting with human actors, a real machine is used.

"There are some things only visual effects can pull off," Levy told USA Today.
"But when you give an actor a real thing, in this case a real
8-foot-tall machine, to interact with and do dialogue opposite, you get
a more grounded reality to the performance."

"Real Steel" has been actively casting extras in the Metro Detroit area since May and started filming in June.